Amadee Wohlschlaeger

Amadee Wohlschlaeger (December 3, 1911 – June 24, 2014) was a 20th-century American sports cartoonist in St. Louis. He was known professionally as simply "Amadee", which was how he signed his cartoons. He was a long-time sports cartoonist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, in an era when newspaper sports pages usually included a prominent cartoon.[1] He drew the Weatherbird cartoon for more than 49 years.[2]

Life and career

Wohlschlaeger was born on December 3, 1911, in St. Louis and grew up in the Carondelet neighborhood in the far south of that city,[1] where he developed a passion for drawing when a small child.[3] He did not attend high school (although he did later take art classes at Washington University in St. Louis). His father was a printer with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and the younger Wohlschlaeger took a job there at age 14, as a copy boy earning $7.50 (about $130.30[4] in 2023 dollars) a week. In 1929, at age 17, he was hired into the paper's art department.[1]

In 1932, Wohlschlaeger became the fourth artist to draw the Post-Dispatch's Weatherbird, which was created in 1901 and remains in continuous daily use. He drew the Weatherbird, usually accompanied by a pithy observation on current events, from 1932 to 1981. His Weatherbird marked D-Day, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and many other notable events.[1] He was succeeded as illustrator by Albert Schweitzer.[5]

Wohlschlaeger drew his first sports cartoon for the paper in 1936.[1] Among his contributions was his "Cardinals Camp Capers" cartoon, sent in from spring training.

In 1939, he filled in as the Post-Dispatch's editorial cartoonist, drawing caricatures of Hitler and Mussolini as well as local politicians.[1]

Wohlschlaeger drew many covers for the Sporting News, which was then produced in St. Louis and known as "The Baseball Bible".[1][6] He also drew covers for University of Missouri football programs for more than 30 years,[7] and covers for the annual St. Louis Baseball Writers dinner.[6]

He was using a technique largely forgotten today. It was Ebony graphite and pencil on something called social board... Amadee actually learned a lot of this stuff from cartoonists in the 1890s. So you can make a direct line back from Amadee to 19th century newspapering almost.

— Dan Martin, Post Dispatch cartoonist dies at 102[8]

Wohlschlaeger retired in 1981.[9] He was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1992.[7]

Wohlschlaeger was married to Violet Wohlschlaeger; they had a son, Amadee Wohlschlaeger Jr.[10] Wohlschlaeger died June 24, 2014, in St. Louis County.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Michael D. Sorkin (June 25, 2014). "Amadee dies at 102; Weatherbird artist was one of the last of the great sports cartoonists". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  2. ^ "Amadee Wohlschlaeger".
  3. ^ "Amadee". Mathis Jones Communications. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  4. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  5. ^ McGuire, John (December 19, 1999). "This Old Bird Saw the Century Fly by". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 39. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Dick Kaegel. "Renowned St. Louis cartoonist Amadee dies at 102". MLB.com. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  7. ^ a b "Missouri Sports Hall of Fame Inductee – Amadee Wohlschlaeger". Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  8. ^ Patricia Clark (June 25, 2014). "Post Dispatch cartoonist dies at 102". Fox2. KTVI. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  9. ^ "Amadee Wohlschlaeger's Weatherbirds". StL Today. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
  10. ^ "Services set for artist Amadee Wohlschlaeger". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. June 25, 2014. Retrieved September 4, 2016.

Publications